


He Knows Now

by Sunel0



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Blood, Drowning, Happy Ending, M/M, MerMay, Murder, Rated For Violence, Soulmates, mermaid au, mermaid!stiles, not much blood btw, so might be overrated but I'd like to be sure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-23
Updated: 2020-05-23
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:28:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24326521
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sunel0/pseuds/Sunel0
Summary: Stiles remembers things. They feel vague and misty, like something long gone, a previous life he had never lived.But he remembers Theo clearly.
Relationships: Theo Raeken/Stiles Stilinski
Comments: 8
Kudos: 71





	He Knows Now

**Author's Note:**

> Well, apparently, BH is somewhere near the ocean
> 
> Warning for some blood and the fact that mermaids here use their teeth to attack people as well, just in case
> 
> I planned to make a Disney-stile thing oh well
> 
> Enjoy!:33

Stiles remembers things. They feel vague and misty, like something long gone, a previous life he had never lived.

Being little. Playing with other little ones.

Theo.

Mom dying.

Everything turning very bad for some time, then getting better.

Scott getting bitten.

And how everything spiraled out of control after that.

What he remembers most clearly is the ice cold water filling up his nose making him panic for a second, until something inside him clicks, util the confines of the bathtub feel like the thing that is killing him, not the water. Then the feeling fades and he wakes up in a white space. With Scott and Allison. Something inside him is annoyed at him waking up, but it faded away so quickly he’d forgotten about it immediately in that life. In this one, he feels that annoyance.

Things get a bit hazy after that. As if he dreamt them, as if it wasn’t his reality. Just a weird trick of imagination, a life never lived and just stuck in his head.

There are some clear flashes, but it feels like he had to fight for the clarity, one part of him clinging to the murkiness with all it had. Always waking up, trying to push it away, block it, close it. Even going to a clinic thinking it was somehow going to help him.

He didn’t understand what was his only way to freedom.

Now he knows.

It has always been the water calling him, raging because he wasn’t doing what he was supposed to, lashing out, desperately trying to make him to see, to understand, to wake up.

And now he has.

And now he knows.

He has accepted it.

It took him long enough.

He takes a closer look at the flashes of clarity.

He has some time. All the time. All the patience.

Stiles chuckles quietly.

Oh, how scared he was.

He doesn’t remember much after that anyway. It’s mostly fear. Until the anger comes back.

That no-one listens to him.

Theo.

That he has to make excuses for saving his own life.

Theo.

That he’s trusted less than a person who is virtually a stranger.

Theo.

Hitting that smug face.

Theo.

The portal to Hell.

Theo.

That no-one listens to him again. That it’s not fair. That he’s just a kid. They all are. That he needs help, not eternal punishment. That it’s pure hypocrisy to let so many others walk freely and punish just the one so severely.

The one Stiles secretly believes could be redeemed. The one Stiles secretly wants to have redemption.

The one Stiles secretly needs so bad to get that redemption. That help.

No Theo.

The absence of him.

Except it isn't always the anger. It feels weird. Equally as hot and prickly but different.

He liked what Theo told him.

Well, more like the real he liked it, the he he is now. The true one. The one the water woke up.

But both of them liked that smirk. Those eyes. That mind.

The fact that he didn’t even dare to snap properly was very telling. That he felt the need to run away, to hide, to let these feelings out privately. To go to the very edge of the town. Of his little world.

Of course now he knows it wasn’t just that.

That he didn’t pull back when he had the chance. When he realized he was going to fall.

Right into the water.

Ready to claim him.

  


After that he remembers the pain. He doesn’t know how long it took. He was nothing but pain, and pain doesn’t know time.

But now he feels better. So much better. He has never felt so good in his entire life.

He’s where he’s supposed to be.

The darkness and water gave him his true form.

His true life. True reality.

He is finally himself. Cold, able to think properly. Understanding clearly now what his too human soul tried to tell him all along.

How his true self’s mate was just right there.

But now Stiles knows.

And he’s so very angry.

  


It is a bit hard to get to them now, since he’s bound to the water. They usually have to come to him.

But now his anger has the cold patience of the depth of the ocean.

The first he gets his hands on is one of those twins. It’s mostly an accident, but Stiles thinks all of them will be like that. He can’t really get out of the water. But the water will help him in it’s own way.

He knows it did now.

He remembers hating the twins for what they did to Boyd and Derek.

And he remembers liking Boyd and Derek. So it’s almost like he has one more reason.

Aiden tries to fight back, desperately, brutally, the way a person who knows how to survive does.

But he can’t even swim. Leave alone overpower Stiles now, in his true form, in the water.

He can’t fight water.

Sadly, Stiles got just one, but the second one will never be complete without his brother anyway, so Stiles guesses that’s fair for now.

Stiles isn’t even sure Aiden recognized him. Not that it matters, but it might have been fun to see the horror of the full understanding on his face.

  


Most of the time he just floats in the water, silent, remembering again and again the moments of clarity. He feels cold, patient and eternal.

Good.

But far from perfect.

And for that, he is angry.

  


Next, he almost gets Scott. Stiles could get both him and Kira, but he’s not sure about her yet. His human soul liked her well enough.

On the other hand, she did open that portal to Hell.

But she is also the one who could potentially open it again.

So the water lets her go almost immediately.

And Stiles focuses on Scott.

Scott fights differently, not the way Aiden did. Not as desperately. Scott doesn’t believe he’ll die. He’s the main hero, he has the plot armor. Stiles finds it amusing enough to get distracted for a moment. And Scott manages to scratch him deeply enough for Stiles’ hand to let go involuntarily.

This is how Scott gets away, wounded but alive. Stiles doesn’t think he was recognized this time either, Scott didn’t look at his face beyond all the pointy shark teeth.

Stiles thinks it’s a good thing, so the water doesn’t hold Scott. The pack might want to check what’s in here now.

And come straight into his hands.

He doesn’t think he’ll be able to get all of them. It might be a bit hard even for the water.

But he knows that the ones he need will get to him. Eventually.

He has nothing better to do anyway.

Just wait.

  


Stiles isn’t really sure how long it’s been again. He doesn’t really care. Time doesn’t really exist for him now.

But he feels something suddenly. Something new but so vaguely and painfully familiar. He hears something. He’s not sure what, he’s not sure how he knew where to be last times either, but this one is still different somehow.

It’s not angry.

So he goes up, to the surface. It’s not really dark yet, so he should be careful. The pack knows about him anyway, but still.

He sees a truck and a figure on the shore.

His heart feels warm like fresh blood and very close to the way it used to feel when he wasn’t himself yet, so big, almost too big. He gets a bit closer.

Theo.

It’s Theo.

Stiles didn’t expect to ever see him again. He feels as if someone put a balloon inside his chest and was slowly inflating it even though there wasn’t any space already.

He gets even closer. He sees the hunched shoulders and the limp hands on the bent knees where Theo leans against the truck wheel and the black shadows beneath the closed eyes.

The flare of anger is actually too much right now, the balloon in Stiles’ chest too flammable.

But right now, he doesn’t have the time for that.

Theo suddenly jerks his head up, as if coming awake, turning it to the side, as if listening for something. Then he gets up, gets into the truck and drives away.

Stiles dives back under the water.

Theo’s back somehow. Stiles doesn’t care how or why.

Theo’s back.

He is back.

Stiles can get to him.

Stiles will get to him.

No-one can stop him now.

  


The next time he feels this pull, he swims as fast as he can, almost throwing himself out of the water but managing to stop just in time. The truck door opens and Theo steps out and sits down on the sand like he did the last time.

Stiles wants to touch him. It’s a weird feeling he kind of forgot about. Strange. He didn’t think it’s been that long that he could have actually forgotten how it was to want to touch someone. It seemed so important.

Although most of his memories are fuzzy.

Stiles gets farther and farther out of the deep water, until he can feel the sand with his tail. It’s uncomfortable. He hates it.

He goes farther.

And then some more.

And then some.

When Theo suddenly opens his eyes, Stiles is already basically on the shore, propped on his elbows.

Theo jumps to his feet immediately, back pressed against the truck, one hand searching for the door handle desperately.

Until he looks up and just freezes.

There’s a silence broken only by the waves whispering their calls into nothingness.

The way they did for Stiles.

The way Stiles has done until very recently.

They got what they called for.

But they wanted more.

Stiles wanted more.

“Stiles?” Theo whispers in return.

Stiles tilts his head to the side.

“They told me you’ve disappeared.”

Stiles tilts his head to the other side. Theo sinks back down to the sand, looking at Stiles, at the tail in caressed gently and lovingly by the water foam, the fins on his back and along his forearms, the webbing between his fingers, his hands flat on the disgustingly and almost unbearably scratchy sand. Stiles nods slowly.

Theo looks down at his own hands for a second, sighs as if counting the seconds, and then looks back up, smirking for some reason. It’s not the smirk Stiles remembers. This one is tired and a bit lost. Stiles’ heart somehow impossibly swells even more but also shrinks into a tiny ball of rage at the same time.

That’s not how Theo’s supposed to be.

“I’ve read about things like that. It’s rare,” he looks Stiles over, taking him in. “But it had to be you who defied all possible odds, I guess,” he chuckles.

There’s some more silence. Comfortable. Warm.

This is nice. Stiles likes it. He’s forgotten warmth.

“Well, hope you’re happy now. Everyone’s pretty much miserable. They think you’re dead, and it looks like they aren’t very wrong,” he picks on the sleeve of his pink sweatshirt distractedly. “And Malia for some reason thinks that I had something to do with it,” he laughs quietly. “As if I could do anything from Hell. No-one really believes her, but they still won’t let me anywhere near them. Which is, fair, but also why bring me back then? It’s not like I have anywhere to go,” he rips a loose thread angrily, seemingly annoyed with the whole thing.

This feeling Stiles understands.

He knows anger.

Stiles puts his head on his crossed arms, listening to the water.

He knows what it wants.

He wants it too.

Theo stands up, gets into the car and drives away.

Stiles knows, he’ll come back.

  


And he does. Once. Twice. Many times.

Stiles can’t tell, how many, but it happens often enough.

Sometimes they just sit in silence. Stiles hates the sand so much.

Sometimes Theo talks. Or paces. Or paces and talks. He talks a lot, more than Stiles remembers him do. As if those are the only times he does that at all.

Theo talks about how tired he is. How he wants to leave the town. How he has no-one here. How he has no idea what to do or what holds him back. How tired he is. How he can’t even get four hours a sleep in one night. How tired he is.

Tired from everything. From this town, from this people, from all the mistakes, from being lost, from not knowing what to do, from feeling helpless.

Stiles knows he’s not just tired.

He’s angry.

Like Stiles was.

Like Stiles is.

He also knows how to help him.

He can’t say it.

He can only wait until Theo’s ready to come to him.

So he waits.

He has patience.

And then they both will get what they want.

  


One time when Theo comes to him, Stiles gets to the surface almost before he can hear the car. He just feels like it’s time.

The feeling is more acute this time.

Theo looks so exhausted, Stiles’ heart feels hot and impossible in his chest.

He comes almost to where his tail, even bent, hits the sand. He doesn’t think he can go any farther.

Theo gets out of the car and basically falls to the ground. He’s silent for several long moments.

“I’m so fucking tired, Stiles,” he whispers.

Stiles moves a bit closer, wanting to touch. He can’t go farther. Not this time.

“I’m not sure I can keep up like this,” Theo sighs and closes his eyes, his head dropping down. “And I miss you so much,” this last part is so quiet Stiles barely hears over the calls of the waves it even with his hearing.

The water is loud this time.

And Stiles knows then. He knows that Theo feels it too. That maybe he felt something like that all along, considering he’s not really human.

But also the full scope of the emotion is only known to the water.

So Stiles knows what to do now.

It’s hard, trying to remember how to do this. He tries a couple of times until he actually manages to do it loud enough for Theo to hear him over the repetitive murmur of the calls, but it’s still a barely human, hoarse and hissing, cold, somehow guttural sound: “Come”.

Theo’s head shoots up.

Stiles backs up a bit, where the water is deep, and stretches his arm out, toward Theo sitting on the shore, looking at Stiles with wide eyes.

Stiles’ skin prickles under those eyes, their vulnerability and depth.

It’s always dangerous in the deep.

Theo stands up and makes a slow step forward, as if in trance. Then he looks down, a bit lost. For a second Stiles almost believes he’s going to turn back and drive away.

It almost hurts.

But then something must click in Theo’s head, like it did in that cold water for Stiles, because he frowns slightly, but just toes off his converses and looks up at Stiles again, smirking, almost smug, almost the way he’s supposed to do.

He steps closer and closer, getting into the icy water, his eyes not leaving Stiles’. His hand feels almost unpleasantly warm in Stiles’. Stiles tugs Theo closer, startling him slightly, holding him in his arms, smiling. Theo’s arms snake around his neck, hugging him. Theo’s eyes are half-closed now, his cheek against Stiles’.

His heart feels like a balloon in Stiles’ chest again. This feels right. Like it’s how it’s supposed to be. Like now everything is perfect, all the pieces in their places.

Almost.

Theo feels nearly unbearably hot despite his lips slowly going bluish already. This part is not right at all.

But Stiles knows what to do.

He’ll fix it.

He’ll make it absolutely perfect.

His hands slowly make their way up Theo’s chest to his shoulders. Theo looks up at him, frowning slightly, confused again. Stiles leans in, pressing his lips against Theo’s for a second, making him relax a bit more, close his eyes, lulling him. The water helps, whispering contentedly.

And then Stiles pushes on his shoulders, fast and hard, diving under the water with him, as deep as he can until Theo reacts.

Theo’s eyes fly open, burning bright yellow in the deep dark water, his whole body vibrating with the growl he can’t afford to let out now, with rage, with the desire to fight back. His hands lock around Stiles’ wrists, almost crushing them.

But Stiles moves fast, and the water is his place. It holds Theo. He doesn’t have enough air. He wasn’t prepared for this, he didn’t expect this.

Stiles looks straight into his still burning eyes and lets go.

But they are too deep already.

He doesn’t have a chance.

He tries, he really does.

It just doesn’t help.

You can’t fight the water.

Stiles sees the precise moment Theo dies. When the light leaves his eyes, and not just the fake yellow one, but the one that made them sparkle gorgeously every time he was being a little shit.

Stiles catches him, tugging the body to his chest, kissing Theo’s forehead.

For the first time in forever, he wants to be able to talk.

Just to whisper that everything will be okay.

The water does it instead.

He’ll make everything perfect. Like it’s supposed to be.

So they’ll be together.

He knows how now.

  


It’s hard. Stiles knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but he didn’t think it’ll be that hard. But he’s not going to give up.

He can’t leave Theo, he made a promise.

But he’s ready to cry. His chest feels constricted.

He can’t fail, not now.

But he isn’t sure he knows what to do anymore. He feels lost and defeated holding Theo close, running his fingers through his hairs, kissing his forehead.

He can wait if he has to. He knows waiting. The water in his soul waited long enough. It murmurs around him, calming.

But it turns out he doesn't need to wait long.

A hand slips up his forearm and shoulder to cup his neck. He lets go a bit, looks down.

Right into those sparkling eyes.

Theo smirks up at him.

So it looks like Stiles knew what he was doing all along.

The water always knows.

  


Stiles looks into those eyes that give him so many feelings again, they sparkle through the haze of red in the water between them. Theo smirks at him, showing his new razor-sharp teeth, also still slightly red.

Stiles’ revenge worked as he knew it would. Their revenge.

He smiles back.

He knew the ones he needed would get to him. To them.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Don't forget to leave kudos if you liked it and comment if you are up to it:3 You can find me on tumblr [under the same name](https://sunel0.tumblr.com):3  
> [Also a moodboard and the post with this fic on tumblr](https://sunel0.tumblr.com/post/618870156681199616) if you'd like to reblog it:3


End file.
